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The board members of the Stanly County Economic Development Commission received updates at the February meeting regarding a New Jersey business wanting to move to Badin.

Custom Alloy Corporation, based in High Bridge, New Jersey, has plans to open a new division using buildings 44 and 45 at the old ALCOA plant.

Founded in 1968, the New Jersey factory employs 210 workers in a 300,000-square-foot facility.

The company’s forging line makes products for United States Navy submarines, helping to build two a year. Custom Alloy is one of less than 4,000 suppliers and is one of 335 suppliers for the Navy.

Custom Alloy makes two Virginia class subs and wants to add a third sub in the new Columbia class, which sales director Jeff Burns said will replace the Ohio class.

“Submarines are extremely important for our strategic deterrent from our adversaries,” Burns said.

The company will also make components for the new Ford class of aircraft carriers, having received a $7 million contract from the Navy.

The location in Badin will produce seamless pipe from between 2.5 and 25 inches in diameter.

Burns said the company’s attention has been drawn away from New Jersey to Badin because of labor and electrical power problems.

“We’ve just been extremely encouraged and really feel supported by everyone who has gotten us to this point in the project,” Burns said.

Custom Alloy filed for Chapter 11 restructuring in October 2022, but Burns said operations have never been interrupted.

Burns said the Badin facility will employ about 40 workers in the first phase, and if the business continues to grow it will add 20 or 30 jobs. The plant will have two 10-hour shifts a day but it may grow to 24-hour operations.

He said while the plant in New Jersey gets three to four resumes every three months, the Badin plant is getting three to four a week.

Burns also said the plant is working with Stanly Community College’s trade program.

SCC President Dr. John Enamait said the new trade facility will be completed in early 2024 and be ready for the fall semester of that year. Enamait said the new trade facility will be “coming online almost at the perfect time” for Custom Alloy.

Operations for Custom Alloy, Burns said, will begin possibly around May.